A critical shortage of emergency room doctors in Winnipeg has prompted the provincial nurses union to sound an alarm over stressed-out emergency staff.

Grace General Hospital was forced to call in family doctors to run its emergency department on the weekend. Seven Oaks General Hospital just barely avoided closing its emergency room a few weeks ago by allowing a family doctor to fill a vacant shift.

Manitoba Nurses' Union president Maureen Hancharyk says when family physicians are called in to take the place of emergency room doctors, there's more stress for already stressed-out ER nurses. ... Manitoba

The head of the Manitoba Nurses Union is raising the alarm about the stresses faced by new nurses, in light of a recent study of burnout in Ontario nurses.

A study of 225 junior nurses across Ontario suggests 66 per cent had symptoms of burnout, such as emotional exhaustion and depression, less than two years into their jobs, said researchers at the University of Western Ontario.

The nurses pointed to work overload, lack of fairness in the workplace, poor interpersonal relationships and lack of empowerment as precipitating burnout. ... New

About 75 heath-care workers gathered at St. Boniface Hospital in Winnipeg over the noon hour Wednesday to protest against a plan to eliminate health-care aide positions.

Pickets carried signs reading, "Keep caregivers, cut bureaucrats," and, "Hospital care is going down the toilet" as they marched in front of the hospital Wednesday afternoon.

The hospital plans to cut more than 40 health-care aides and bring in 16 registered nurses in order to increase the ratio of nurses per patient. Hospital officials say the changes should result in improvements in patient care. ... Health

People who work at St. Boniface Hospital are worried about impending staffing changes, especially in light of a recent medical error where the hospital circumcized the wrong baby boy.

It is still unclear how the incident happened and an internal investigation won't be complete for several weeks. The hospital now plans to cut more than 40 health-care aides and increase the number of nurses in order to increase the ratio of nurses per patient.